Just after the sun set on Nov. 24 -- the day that Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson’s fate would be disclosed to the world -- Gov. Jay Nixon faced a throng of reporters at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

Appearing before cameras that would simulcast his words across the globe, the Democratic governor talked at length about how law enforcement officials were ready to respond to the grand jury’s decision.

State Senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal continues to criticize the governor. She says Nixon’s plans for a new commission to study social unrest inflamed by Ferguson shooting come too late to help the community.

“The Governor and his approach should have occurred year ago if not 77 days ago," Chappelle-Nadal said. "To have a commission is very easy and simple to do. It is 'low hanging fruit.'”

Nixon's commission first order of business will be to conduct a study of underlying social and economic conditions that creates unrest in Ferguson.

State Education Commissioner Christine Nicastro announced this afternoon she’s resigning at the end of the year, ending a tumultuous run as the head of the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Nicastro, who’s served since 2009, has come under fire from Democrats and Republicans the past year as the state has dealt with unaccredited school districts and begun to implement Common Core Standards.

A long-simmering feud between Gov. Jay Nixon and some black politicians, going back to his days as Missouri’s attorney general, flared up again in Jefferson City this week, fanned by the debate over school transfer legislation.

But not all African-American officials are taking sides against the governor. Some, especially in the state House, are urging Nixon to veto the student transfer bill, because they consider its changes in the transfer law harmful to black students.

Legislation is moving through the Missouri Senate that would strictly limit where Electronic Benefits Transfer, or EBT cards, can be used in the state.

State Senator Will Kraus (R, Lee’s Summit) is sponsoring Senate Bill 251. He says a new federal law that just took effect will ban EBT card use in casinos, liquor stores and adult entertainment venues.

“We’re taking that federal law (and) putting (it) into state statute," Kraus said. "But we’re also adding a few places that we think these cards shouldn’t be used at: amusement parks, entertainment events, athletic events, (or) to purchase alcohol, tobacco (or) lottery tickets.”

Senate Democrats have ended their filibuster of a workplace discrimination bill, after an agreement was reached with the bill’s sponsor. But that doesn’t mean they won’t try blocking the bill again.

Democrat Maria Chappelle-Nadal agreed to end the filibuster after the bill’s sponsor, GOP Senator Brad Lager, allowed her to add an amendment – that amendment would guarantee the right to a jury trial in all workplace discrimination cases. She says, though, that the bill’s definition of what constitutes workplace discrimination is still flawed.